“We would like to briefly explain the process we have in place when doctors ask us to consider if a patient can have a drug which is not approved by Nice or the All Wales Medicine Strategy Group (AWMSG).

“Like all health boards and trusts in Wales, ABMU follows the all-Wales policy for making decisions on Individual Patient Funding Requests (IPFR).

“The health board has an IPFR panel which meets fortnightly to consider each request on its merits, using clinical evidence available at that time, and the criteria set out within the all-Wales policy.

“This panel is chaired by a senior clinician and others, including consultants, GP, pharmacist and a lay representative.

“A patient can request a review of the IPFR panel decision. The review process comprises a separate panel, which tests whether the IPFR panel followed the all-Wales policy.

“Although the review panel cannot overturn the original decision, it can ask for that decision to be reconsidered by the IPFR panel.

“If at any point further evidence becomes available to support the patient’s IPFR application, the patient’s clinician can submit a new funding request to the Health Board’s IPFR panel.”